CA-47 Vincent Thomas Bridge

BEFORE THE BRIDGE

There has always been a
need to cross the Los Angeles Harbor Main Channel, even
as far back as the early 1870s, when the first ferry
service consisted of a rowboat that made the trip to
Terminal Island only as passengers were available. For
decades, private ferry service was the only means of
transport for island residents, cannery and shipyard
workers, horses, wagons and automobiles.

A municipal ferry service
began operating from the Sixth Street wharf in 1941.

The
daytime passenger/automobile ferry traveled at six
knots, about seven miles per hour, and a second wooden,
pedestrian-only ferry carried night-shift workers back
and forth across the 1,000-foot channel. This round-trip
cost five cents and was billed as the shortest and least
expensive ferry service in the world.

As the Port of Los Angeles
area grew and facilities were in increasing demand, the
natural step was to develop Terminal Island. The bridge
provided a vehicular connection between the port
communities of San Pedro, Wilmington and Long Beach and
Terminal Island. This led to the growth of shipping,
shipbuilding and repair, production, refining and
storage of crude oil and gasoline, generation and
transmission of electric power, lumberyards,
packinghouses and canneries and the opening of a naval
base on the island.

During World War II,
shipyards, Navy installations and federal facilities
were expanded, increasing the flow of traffic to the
island. In the decades following the war, further
development at the Port of Los Angeles created the need
for faster, more convenient access to Terminal Island,
which had grown in size through landfill operations.

From 1937 through 1957,
various proposals were considered regarding construction
of a tunnel under the Main Channel. Engineers concluded
that a four-lane bridge could be built for slightly more
than a two-lane tunnel. In 1958, the Los Angeles Board
of Harbor Commissioners passed a resolution in support
of the bridge construction and agreed to furnish rights
of way.

ASSEMBLYMAN VINCENT THOMAS

Vincent Thomas was born in
Biloxi, Mississippi, the third of eight children of
Croatian immigrants.His
family moved to San Pedro when he was 10 years old.
Thomas earned an athletic scholarship to Santa Clara
University, where he coached boxing and other sports,
and obtained a bachelor’s degree in philosophy in
1932. He earned his law degree from Loyola University in
1936.

Thomas was successful in
his first run for office in 1940, becoming the State
Assemblyman for the 68th District representing San
Pedro. While in the Assembly, Thomas worked to improve
the California commercial fishing industry, and to
provide programs for public recreation, senior citizen
services, the disabled, transportation and education.

By 1963, when the bridge
opened, Thomas had the longest record of service in the
Assembly and was known affectionately as “Dean of the
Assembly.” He served 19 consecutive terms for a total
of 38 years. Thomas regarded completion of the bridge as
the greatest accomplishment of his career. To honor his
foresight and untiring work that culminated in its
construction, in 1961, the California Legislature passed
Concurrent Resolution 131 naming the bridge for Vincent
Thomas.

VINCENT THOMAS BRIDGE
FACTS

-- Third
largest suspension span bridge in California,
after the
Golden Gate Bridge and San
Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge,
respectively.

--
First
welded (not riveted) suspension bridge in the
United States.

-- Only
suspension bridge in the world supported
entirely on
piles.

-- Named
after Assemblyman Vincent Thomas of San
Pedro. In 1961,
the California Legislature passed a
special measure to
name the structure after
Thomas in honor of his
persistence and faith
in the bridge's future success.

-- Designed
by the Bridge Department of the
California Division of
Highways, now known as
Caltrans, which owns and
maintains the
bridge.

-- When the Bridge opened in
1963, a 25-cent toll was collected in each direction.
On grand opening day, Assemblyman Thomas paid the first
toll. In 1983, the toll
increased to 50 cents for
westbound traffic and was free for eastbound traffic.
In
2000, the Bridge was considered “paid for” and the
toll was repealed.

-- Painting the bridge is a
routine and continuous maintenance job, handled by
Caltrans,
which requires 1,500 gallons of zinc, 500
gallons of primer and 1,000 gallons
of green paint to
cover the span.

-- In
1996, the Los Angeles City Council declared the Vincent
Thomas Bridge as
the City of Los Angeles’ official
welcoming monument.

VINCENT THOMAS BRIDGE STATISTICS

Opened
to traffic:

November
15, 1963

Tower
Height:

365 feet; 185 feet (35 stories) above
water

Length:

6,060 feet (2.2 miles)

Width
(Roadway):

52 feet

Deck:

6.5
inches of concrete

Center
Suspension Span:

1,500 feet

East/West
Tower Spans:

506
feet

Anchor
Weight:

23,000 tons each (two anchors)

San
Pedro Approach:

1,838 feet

Terminal
Island Approach:

1,712
feet

Vertical
Clearance:

185 feet

Cables:

19; 11 interior and 8 exterior

Cable
Wires:

212 per cable

Steel
Piles:

990 – each
supporting 145 tons

Seismic
Sensors:

26

Traffic
Lanes:

Four – two westbound and two eastbound

Traffic
Count:

32,000
vehicles each weekday

Construction
Cost:

$21
million

VINCENT THOMAS BRIDGE
LIGHTING STATISTICS

Light Color:

Blue

Light
Type:

Clusters of tiny light-emitting diodes (LEDs)

Number of Lights:

160 lamps on the bridge; 360 LEDs per lamp

Lamp Size:

Five
millimeters in diameter

Lamp Brightness:

Equivalent to 150-watt incandescent bulb

Power Use:

20 watts total (low usage + high-intensity
light output)

Powered by:

4.5-kilowatt solar panel system – each
panel is two feet wide and four feet long and generates
10 watts of electric power per square foot

Maintenance:

Solid-state circuitry and robust construction
enables LED lamps to withstand ocean gales and corrosive
sea air for years of maintenance-free operation

Average
Life:

100,000
operating hours – LED lamps last 30-50 times
longer than incandescent lamps and deliver a power
savings of 80-90% compared to traditional lights.

Environment:

Will not disrupt migratory birds
Will not
burden the power grid
Non-polluting

Project
Cost:

$1,002,657.81

Schedule:

Lights turned on from dusk to midnight every night, per
California Coastal Commission requirements

As a covered entity under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the City of Los Angeles does not discriminate on the basis of disability and, upon request, will provide reasonable accommodation to ensure equal access to its programs, services, and activities.